The Prime Minister wants dozens of world leaders to meet for a major one-off summit[3] where they would rewrite the rules of international finance encompassing “very large and very radical changes”.

The original Bretton Woods agreement in 1944, spurred by the depression of the 1930s and the second world war, created the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and laid down common standards for markets around the world. Now with the current financial crisis EU leaders see another opportunity to enhance global regulations on sovereign economies.

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[4]

Angela Merkel, the German Chancellor, backed Brown’s call, saying it was time to “rethink the world’s financial system and prevent any repetition” of the current crisis.

French President Nicholas Sarkozy made his own call[5] for a “new Bretton Woods” earlier this month, arguing that the time has come to replace the “Anglo-Saxon” model of “unrestrained markets”.

Officials in Brussels indicated last night that a “Bretton Woods II” summit could take place in New York as early as next month, reports the Financial Times[6].

In addition, Morgan Stanley Chief Executive John Mack has also called for a new global body[7] to oversee the financial crisis, warning that it is like nothing he’s ever seen before.

The calls echo those of elite figures such as CFR member Jeffrey Garten[8] and Timothy Geithner, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, who have both recently called for a “new global monetary authority”, a de-facto global financial dictatorship, operating across borders and forcing nations and corporations to register and adhere to strict monitoring and regulations.